“I am happy to announce that earlier today, Orange County was able to secure approval from the State of California to reopen economically with more Stage 2 activities being permitted under Governor Gavin Newsoms reopening framework. The people of Orange County have acted responsibly over the past several months, which have spared us a large outbreak that we have seen elsewhere,” said Vice Chairman Andrew Do, of the Orange County Board of Supervisors.

“We continue to see low numbers of Coronavirus cases, and because of that we have reached another milestone. Governor Newsom has allowed Orange County to resume activities, like dining in restaurants and visiting shopping centers, as long as state health measures are followed. This is a much-needed step forward for our business community and our residents,” he added.

Amid the reopening, however, public health officials in Orange County issued strong recommendations to slow the spread of COVID-19.

“The Order includes necessary preventative measures to control and reduce the spread of COVID-19 in our community and help preserve the capacity in our local health care system, which was one of the metrics the California Department of Public Health took into account before approving our plan to move deeper into Stage 2 of re-opening Orange County,” said Dr. Nichole Quick, County Health Officer.

Effective Saturday, the order states that those with COVID-19 symptoms shall self isolate for a period of at least three days after they have recovered and at least ten days after their symptoms first appeared. Asymptomatic confirmed COVID-19 cases shall self isolate for a period of 10 days from the date the specimen for the positive test was obtained.The only exception includes leaving one’s place of isolation to receive medical care.

Additionally, all county residents who have been in close contact with a person diagnosed with COVID-19 should similarly quarantine themselves in their home until 14 days from the last date they were in contact with that individual.

In addition to the above, public health officials also urged residents to continue to wear cloth face-coverings when in a public place and maintain 6 feet of physical distance from others.

“I am happy to know that we can continue moving forward in getting Orange County back to a state of normalcy. The wellbeing of our businesses, their employees and the families that rely on them are of the utmost importance,” Second District Supervisor Michelle Steel said. “I have said this before and I will say it again: every business is essential to the families and workers that rely on them to keep a roof over their head and food on the table. I continue to stand with Orange County businesses and workers as we work to transition our county back to business as usual.”